Getting a personal loan is quite a tedious process, and if one’s take-home is less, it’s even more tiresome. Apart from complicated paper works, the waiting period is too long.
When Aditya Kumar thought to start something on his own, he found a huge opportunity and need in the lending space. “This particular space, especially personal loan to the salary segment, is underserved. We conducted a survey before starting our own company, and found that there are seven lakh companies in India, and just imagine how many employees are waiting to be served,” Kumar says.
Getting a personal loan is quite a tedious process, and if one’s take-home is less, it’s even more tiresome. Apart from complicated paper works, the waiting period is too long.
In February this year, Qbera, an online lending platform providing lending services through an end-to-end digital platform, was launched. It raised $0.50 million from angel investors.
“We are a technology company capable of making instant lending decisions and getting money into borrowers accounts in as little as eight hours,” says the founder and CEO of Qbera Aditya Kumar.
Qbera is a product of Creditexchange, which was founded in December 2015. “There is always a need for personal loans. Banks and non-bank financial institutions do lend personal loans but they focus more on the existing customers. What about those people who earn less money but in need of loans? And what about those who work in startups or in some BPO company? They do need unsecured personal loan,” says Kumar.
He adds that Qbera was launched with an objective of addressing the growing need in the market for quick and convenient delivery of personal finance services. The platform promises to provide access to credit for the common person, and make financial services more inclusive for those who are currently not served or underserved.
The startup has partnered with RBL Bank, and jointly provides services to customers. It raised $500,000 angel funding.
Its online platform is based on LendFoundry, a FinTech lending solution. “The loan amounts range from Rs 50,000 to Rs 5 lakh, and it targets salaried individuals who earn Rs 20,000 and above. The loan interest is similar to any bank. For instance, one has to pay approximately Rs 3,400 per lakh for three years,” he explains. The startup has received close to 10,000 applications in just few weeks. “We are focusing on top 13 markets. At present, we are in Bengaluru, and by the end of this month, we will launch our services in Chennai and NCR,” says Kumar.
Going forward, the startup plans to launch products for self-employed professionals and non-professionals.
While it has partnered with RBL Bank, the startup plans to tie up with more number of banks in future. Also, it’s planning to look at specific loans such as travel and wedding for end-users. “We are planning to disburse loans worth Rs 150 crore by the end of this financial year,” says Kumar.
